


The Capture

by timelxrd-victorious (Brambleshadow_of_WindClan)



Series: The Time Lord Victorious: The Time Lord Chronicles [1]
Category: Animorphs - Katherine A. Applegate, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen, Tumblr Roleplay
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-11
Updated: 2016-04-23
Packaged: 2018-04-25 22:30:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,888
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4979038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brambleshadow_of_WindClan/pseuds/timelxrd-victorious
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Yeerk was considering his next move. He could not "hear" his thoughts, but he could feel him using his brain. He was digging through his memories, trying to find out more about her and about his host. He was using his brain. Using <i>him</i>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Based on an RP with [auora-gallifreytimelady]() on Tumblr. And it's entirely my fault thanks to this post:
> 
> I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I really really want an Animorphs/Doctor Who AU where the Doctor becomes the first-ever Time Lord-Controller—but since Yeerks are so good at mimicking their host’s mannerisms and there is no physical way to tell that he’s been infested (I’m looking at you, Cyber-Planner), his companions have no idea. And then his Yeerk just slowly ends up turning more and more of the Doctor’s companions into Controllers (and since the Doctor has the TARDIS and can travel in time)…
> 
> (Also for all I know he just keeps a portable Kandrona somewhere in the TARDIS.)

The Doctor groaned quietly, and found that even that slight sound hurt his ears. Everything seemed loud, hazy, out of focus, and he couldn’t concentrate.

Why couldn’t he concentrate?

The last concrete memory he had was searching around a hospital room in some nameless town in late-1990s California, finding a Jacuzzi that hadn’t been a Jacuzzi. Then he’d been startled, or he’d lost his footing—he couldn’t quite remember ( _Why_ couldn’t he remember?)—and he’d fallen into the pool headfirst…had been submerged for several minutes . . .

Concerned voices reached his ears. Someone was asking if he was okay.

His eyes opened, moved around. He tried to open his mouth to speak, found that he couldn’t.

Then he realized: He hadn’t made the decision to open his eyes. The Doctor tried to move an arm, a leg, anything, but his body wouldn’t respond.

_Wh-what?_

<Ah. Interesting.> A voice in his head. <Two hearts? In a human?>

<No, not human at all. And a time traveller. A genius as well, though part of a long-dead race that… Oh, I see.> The voice sounded shocked, amused.

The Doctor tried to move again, quickly realized that he would not be going anywhere anytime soon.

<Oh, stop struggling, Doctor,> the voice said. <It’s pointless. You’re mine now.>

_What?_

<No, on second thought, do. Try to keep fighting me, Doctor,> the voice sneered. <The Doctor, the Last of the Time Lords, the destroyer of his own kind.> It laughed.

Then he knew. The way the voice had sneered the name of his species, with all the hatred it reserved for another . . .

A Yeerk!

A Yeerk in his own head . . .

He was a Controller. . . .

* * *

A normal day traveling to the 1990s turned into an investigation when Aurora discovered that something strange, yet interesting was happening in the area that she landed on.

At first, she found a young man that suddenly morphed into a cockroach. Then watched him as he ran off.  She followed the dog closely till she arrived at the hospital. Once she arrived, the boy had disappeared. maybe he was already inside. She quickly rushed inside, making her way into the pool area where the Jacuzzi was. Seeing an older man pulling himself out of the water, laying on his back.

Concerned, Aurora rushed over to him. Kneeling down beside him, checking to see if he had any injuries. “Sir? Are you alright?” She called out to him, shaking him slightly to try to wake him up. She pressed her ear against his chest to hear his heart to see if it was still beating. Her eyes widen when she heard two hearts beating in his chest. _He’s a Time Lord? But . . . how?_

* * *

<Very good. You figured it out,> the silent voice in his head said, mocking him.

<NO!>

The Doctor heard a female voice asking if he was okay, and for a second he thought she had heard him cry out. But no, she was just concerned.

He felt her shaking him followed by a weight on his chest as she listened to his heartbeats, but it was if from far away.  The Doctor tried to think, to come up with some way of warning her. He could feel a faint telepathic presence—one that was entirely different from the alien possessing him and felt strangely, achingly familiar.

He wanted to scream, to tell her to run, that he was no longer himself. But his mouth wouldn’t move. It was like there was a roadblock. He could form the thoughts, could give the order for his tongue and lips to move, but the order never reached its intended destination.

<Like I said, Doctor, struggle all you like,> the Yeerk gloated. <It won’t matter, in the end. I’m inside your head, wrapped around your brain like a living blanket.>

He knew it. A Yeerk could spread its sluglike body out, could sink between the crevices and cracks of a host’s brain. They melted like a liquid into every available space, wrapped their bodies around a brain and attached their own neurons to their host’s neurons. It didn’t matter the host. The Yeerks had already taken the Hork-Bajir, the Gedds, the Taxxons, one Andalite, several humans—How had he not known about this invasion?—and now they had a Time Lord.

< _Get. Out. Of. My. Head_ ,> the Doctor snarled. He could feel the Yeerk digging through his memories. The parasitic slug was considering its next move, using his brain… using him. While the Doctor had psychic defenses of his own, he’d never dealt with a telepathic invader like this. Even if there had been some physical component, he’d always been able to remove it due to it usually being on the outside of his body. But this . . .

<Oh, I don’t think I’d want to do that, Doctor. Why would I abandon such an interesting host? I’m sure Visser Three would be very pleased to meet you. We’d heard of the Time Lords, of course, once we’d spread out across the galaxy, but we didn’t think you actually _existed_. >

<Yeah, well, sorry to disappoint you.>

This was a nightmare. It _had_ to be. He’d wake up and be back on the TARDIS.

Oh, who was he kidding? This was _real_. He was a prisoner in his own mind, and there was nothing he could do about it.


	2. Chapter 2

“Sir? Sir?” Aurora kept calling out to him, still overwhelmed in shock once she discovered that he was a Time Lord like she was. Trying to figure out how to bring the man out of unconsciousness. 

Then, an idea struck. She could get into his mind, telepathically tell his body to get up. She pressed her fingers on the temples of his head, closing her own eyes. 

She paused when she can finally read his mind. He was called the Doctor. She remembered someone with that name, but that when she was a child. Her people had told her about the Doctor. And it made her curious about him.

 _Sir? Please wake up!_ She called out from her mind.

But, that wasn’t all she was getting out of his mind. There was a voice in his head. Something that didn’t belong there.

 _Who’s in there? Who are you?_  She kept reading further into his thoughts as she was trying to find out what sort of creature was in there.

* * *

His body sat up suddenly, coughing hard.

“I’m… I’m okay,” the Doctor heard his voice say, once he had recovered. Only he hadn’t said anything. His mouth had spoken the words, but he hadn’t said it. The Yeerk had spoken through his mouth.

“Sorry I scared you,” his voice continued, “but I’m fine.” He stopped, studied her quizzically. “Do I know you?”

Aurora raised an eyebrow at him.

“Umm…no. I’m just a concerned friend. Are you sure you’re alright?” she asked him with a worried look on her face, still sensing that there was something wrong.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Honest.” His body picked itself up off the floor. “I’ve been through worse than falling into a whirlpool.”

It was incredibly creepy and shocking to listen to. The Yeerk was using his voice, his inflection. It was saying the words the Doctor would have said.

Whoever she was—and he was beginning to suspect she was a Time Lady—she wouldn’t be able to guess. As far as she could see or hear (unless she tried to enter his mind again), the Yeerk in his brain was him.

<Yes, Doctor,> the Yeerk sneered silently. <Your body is my home now. Mine. Body and mind, under my control. Forget resistance. It is futile. No host has ever overpowered a Yeerk. It is impossible.>

The Doctor felt a dark wave of terror wash over him, mingled with some irritation. But the Yeerk was telling the truth. He knew he was. No host had ever defeated a Yeerk.

Unless he managed to somehow get the slug out of his head, he would never be free. And even if this Yeerk moved on, they would just give him to another.He was a slave.

 _Oh, hell no!_ He’d find a way out of this.

The Doctor tried to reach out for the Yeerk’s thoughts, but found he couldn’t read them. He could sense emotions, could hear the thought-speak, but he couldn’t read the alien’s mind.

_Well, that’s irritating._

“Oh, right. Well, I’m glad you’re not hurt,” she said, giving him a small smile, trying to hide the concern and the suspicion she had towards the man standing before her.

She thought she heard another voice from his head when she was checking on him. It seemed to be covered when the man finally woke up from unconsciousness. . . .

“I’m the Doctor, by the way.” The Yeerk flashed her his usual charming smile. “Who are you?”

“Pleasure to meet you, Doctor. I’m Aurora,” she introduced herself, deciding to pretend that it was the first time that they’d met and waited for his reaction.

The Yeerk was searching through his host’s memories, looking for anything that would indicate they’d met before. Finding some, he nodded. “Yeah, ‘course you are.” He frowned. “What are you doing here?” Then he held up a hand, reconsidering. “No, not here. We risk getting caught if we stay here, and I really don’t want to have to explain to a bunch of human law enforcement why I was looking around.”

It sounded perfectly reasonable, sounded like something the Doctor would have said. The Time Lord seethed, hating his current predicament. How could he have been so _stupid_ as to fall into a portable Yeerk pool and remain submerged long enough to become infested?

In any case, it wasn’t like there was anything he could do about it now. And his Yeerk didn’t want to raise Aurora’s suspicions. Dunking her head into a Yeerk pool would definitely do that.

“Oh, yeah. You’re probably right. Should we talk somewhere else?” Aurora suggested.

“Yeah. You first.” The Yeerk gestured the Doctor’s hands toward the door in a sweeping motion, resisted the idiotic urge to bow a little.

Aurora raised her eyebrows at him before she followed him out of the door. “So, where are we going?”

“Anywhere but here,” his Yeerk replied.

In his own little corner of his mind, the Doctor growled silently. <Don’t even think about hurting her.>

<Why would I do that? She still thinks I’m you. I, by the way, am Essak one-three-five, formerly Essak two-four-two of the Sulp Niar pool. I’ve been promoted—and will be promoted even further, possibly to a Sub-Visser. No doubt you’re happy for me.>

<How about I just regenerate and kill you?> the Doctor grumbled.

Aurora still followed the man, unsure where he was leading her to. Tilting her head at him as he was walking. Despite how kind he was, she still had her doubts about him.

“So, what brings you here, Doctor?”

“Oh, my TARDIS had detected some unusual technology around this area,” Essak said, “so I decided to check it out and . . . Well, I think you know how that turned out.”

“That’s why I’m here as well.” Aurora said, turning to him. “In fact, I was following….well, never mind about it. Anyways, I’m here for the same reason.”

“Really?” Essak couldn’t keep the surprised tone from the Time Lord’s voice. He quickly searched the Doctor’s mind again for any memory of this female Gallifreyan, found nothing. “Okay, then. But how did you survive the war?” (He’d gathered that much from his host’s mind before the Doctor had retreated into a fuming silence.)

“My parents put me into the escape pod, and had me sent to Earth for my own protection.” She explained with a frown.

“So you don’t know…” Essak was already going through the Doctor’s memories of the Time War, shuddered when he heard the Dalek battle cries of “Exterminate!” and saw Gallifrey vanish in a burst of flaming light.

Not even the Yeerks wanted to mess with the Daleks; besides, they had enough problems of their own with the oh-so-mighty Andalite military. And in any case, a Dalek was impossible to infest. With their metal casing protecting the mutant creature inside, they were no use as hosts.

“Don’t know what?” Aurora asked him, tilting her head. Wanting to know what she missed during the war. And hoped that her parents were still alive.

“They’re all dead.” Essak turned the Doctor’s head away from her, allowed his host’s throat to tighten just a little. “The Time Lords—all of them—they’re dead. So are the Daleks… more or less.”

<Get _out_ of those memories, > the Doctor snapped silently. < _I_ should be the one telling her, not you, you . . . > There wasn’t an English translation for the string of Gallifreyan that followed.

Tears began to form in Aurora’s eyes. She turned away from him, trying to keep the emotions from him.

“I had no choice. I was the only one who could end it.” Essak turned toward her, reached out a hand and placed it lightly on her shoulder. “Aurora…”

<Don’t touch her!> the Doctor snarled, struggling to find a way to briefly regain control of his body. Surely _some_ hosts had managed to resist Yeerk control, especially those who were involuntary.

<And what are you going to do about it?> Essak shot back. <Stop me? I don’t think so.>

Aurora was about to push his hand away from her, not wanting  to be soft around him. But she decided to not push him away. Though, she didn’t look at him.

“I’m not proud of what I did, but you weren’t there,” the Yeerk said. “By the end of the war, the Time Lords were as bad as the Daleks. I don’t like having to kill any living creature, but the Daleks were going to destroy everything we’d worked for as well as the whole of reality. I did what I had to do.”

It was exactly what the Doctor would have said, because it was exactly how he felt.

<See?> Essak said, once both of them sensed the Time Lady’s hesitation. <She liked what I said more.>

The Doctor said nothing, just glowered silently even as he tried to think of a way to alert her to the fact something here was _incredibly wrong._

Aurora walked a few feet away from the man to ponder upon what he had told her. She should be angry at the Doctor for taking away her family, but her family had taught her to forgive, and give others another chance.

“I understand why you would do that. For that,…” She turned to him. “I forgive you.”

Essak blinked. “What,” he said flatly. (Though, to be honest, the Doctor would have reacted the same way.)

“Of course, it’ll make me a while to get used to it. But I can’t always look back into the past. There’s nothing I can do to change it. So, I shouldn’t be mad at you.” Aurora explained as she looked up at him.

The Yeerk curled the Doctor’s lip in an instinctive expression of revulsion. It was a small thing, lasting only a second. Then he was using the Doctor’s mouth to say, “Why not? We—”

“We what?” Aurora asked him, raising her eyebrows.

“We’re Time Lords. We have that right.”

Aurora was now starting to think that this man was acting strange. Not in a Time Lord way. “Um, right.” She raised her eyebrow suspiciously.

“What? Don’t tell me you’ve never thought about it.”

They were out of the hospital by now. Essak glanced up at the sky, thought he saw a red-tailed hawk flying suspiciously close. And… were those cockroaches on its back?

He’d fought against a red-tail several times in his previous Hork-Bajir host, and it had always been with other Earth animals and one particular alien.

<Andalite!> the Yeerk hissed silently, and the Doctor could feel the hatred flowing off him in waves.

<No, I’m pretty sure that’s a red-tailed hawk,> the Time Lord snarked.

<It’s an Andalite bandit in morph,> Essak shot back. Though he couldn’t be sure, he was fairly certain that yes, the Andalite bandits had somehow found out about the hospital base and the plan to infest the governor of this state.

Aurora glanced upwards at the sky, seeing the hawk and the cockroaches. One of them was the same one that she saw on the way to the hospital. As she was watching them, she could sense anger in the Doctor’s body. Something that . . . seemed unusual.

“Are you alright?” she asked him, though at this point she felt that she couldn’t trust him. . . .


	3. Chapter 3

The Time Lord-Controller glanced up at the sky near the hospital for a few more moments before turning away. “Yeah, I’m fine,” Essak said through gritted teeth.

“Are you sure? In fact, I think there’s something wrong with you. I know you’re the Doctor. But you’re acting very differently.” She narrowed her eyes at him.

His eyes drifted back up toward the red-tailed hawk, which was now landing on the roof.

“Andalite filth,” the Yeerk muttered, thankful that at least he survived the assault on the Yeerk pool he was sure would come. (The Andalites had a rather nasty habit of attacking Yeerk feeding grounds. They’d launched a full-scale attack on the underground Kandrona a few months back.) Then, louder, he said, “Honestly, Aurora, I’m fine. Really. It’s me—the Doctor.”

“Yes, you are the Doctor. I can sense it. But, I’m also sensing another presence within you. That anger I just felt, that wasn’t the Doctor’s. It was someone else’s,” she replied.

“Was it?” he responded coolly.

“Yes, so tell me…..who are you? Actually, what are you?”

“Essak one-three-five of the Sulp Niar pool. The Doctor here is now my current host.” After all, what was the point in denying his existence any longer?

She felt relieved that the Doctor was still there, but it worried her that the Essak was taking over his body. But she didn’t want to show her fear. Instead, she give him a serious glance.

“So, why take over his body? Knowing that it could only lead you into trouble.”

The Yeerk shrugged. “He’s the one who fell into the Yeerk pool. I just happened to hitch a ride out.” Essak’s expression darkened. “We’re blind and nearly deaf in our natural state. How can you know what that’s like?

 “Besides, I’m fairly certain the Andalite bandits on this planet are about to murder my brother and sister Yeerks.”

“Well, I can easily understand that. But…” She glared at him. “It doesn’t give you the right to take over this man’s body and using them for your own personal gain. So I’m giving you a warning. Leave his body, or I’ll have to force you out.”

He stilled suddenly, his expression and eyes hard and cold as ice. “No.”

“Very well then.” She picked up a wooden plank that was next to her, hitting him in the head till he was unconscious.

Within a few hours, she pulled him into an abandon building. Tying him up tightly to the chair so he couldn’t get away with the Doctor. She sat in a chair across from him, waiting for him to wake up.

The Doctor had been stunned a little as well as the Yeerk controlling his body. With both of them knocked out—and while Essak was distracted—he used the moment to regain control.

“Aurora?” He blinked open his eyes, stirred, and realized just how tightly he was bound. “Oh, come on. Is this really necessary? Please, just…”

“I’m sorry, but this is the only way. Either you’re the Doctor or the Yeerk, I have to keep you tied down. At least for three days.” She said with a frown.

 “But—,” the Doctor started to protest. Then he was back in a corner of his mind while Essak regained control.

<Well, this is just _great_ ,> the Time Lord muttered silently.

<Shut up, slave.>

“Also, I’m sorry that I have to do this as well.” She pulled out a roll of duct tape, ripping a piece of it. Putting it over his mouth.

The Yeerk just arched an eyebrow at her, a silent question asking, “Really?” (Though, at this point, both the sluglike parasite and its host were in agreement—for once.) The Doctor _hated_ being tied up, and what was worse was that he couldn’t speak. Well, he couldn’t do it anyway, what with being a Controller and all, but still…

Aurora sat down across from him, just watching him with a sad glance. She didn’t want to do this to the Doctor. Especially now that she found him after many years. But if the Yeerk wasn’t going to leave him, she had to do whatever she can to protect him. Even if it mean keeping him tied up for three days.

The Doctor understood why she had him tied up—he would have done the same in her place—and while he wanted the Yeerk out of his head, he still wasn’t happy about the fact that he would be stuck in the exact same place for three days straight.

Essak, he couldn’t help noticing, shared his irritation.

 _Well, isn’t_ that _just peachy._

Aurora sat there with him throughout the day and night. Going into the second day. “I would ask if you wanted anything to eat, but I can’t leave you alone while I’m gone. You might try to escape.”

Essak shrugged and shook his head. The way she had him tied up, he didn’t think even Harry Houdini would be able to escape. And with the duct tape over his host’s mouth, he couldn’t exactly speak out loud.

So he spoke to her in thought-speak. <Do I look like I’m that stupid?>

<Since you asked, yes,> the Doctor snarked silently, directing it only to the Yeerk.

“So, I think we should wait till the final day arrives.’ She smirked, sitting back down on the chair. Luckily, she didn’t need any sleep. She could stay up for years and did not need to sleep. So she didn’t have any problems staying up for another day.

She sat there with him for another day, entering into their third day.

By then, the Doctor was able to see some of the Yeerk’s fantasies: Essak, still in his body, had Aurora bound and gagged at his feet and was standing before the leader of the Yeerk invasion—Visser Three, the only Yeerk ever to successfully seize and control an Andalite body—and was offering him the TARDIS. In others, the Yeerk would conjure up escape scenarios—but having gone this long without the Kandrona nutrients his sluglike body craved, they would not end well.

<Is that all you can think about?> the Doctor asked him snidely.

<Why, would you rather I looked at some of your fantasies? ….I can feel your dread, Doctor. Yes, I think I shall.>

And as one of his (several) fantasies involving a certain pink-and-yellow human companion played in his mind as though he were watching a film, the Doctor was vaguely aware of a rubbing sensation on his wrists.

The Yeerk, the Doctor realized, was working on freeing his hands from the ropes, which had loosened enough over the past two days to help prevent poor circulation—and gave him just enough wriggle room.

“Just a few hours.” Aurora softly said to herself, still looking over at the Doctor. Waiting for the Yeerk to die inside of the Doctor’s head so it could release him.

Essak had the Doctor’s hands working feverishly at loosening the ropes around his wrist. When there was enough room, he worked his host’s hands out and let the ropes drop to the floor. For all his efforts at keeping his work on escape a secret from Aurora, he couldn’t help but curve the Doctor’s lips in a smirk as he caught what the Time Lady muttered under her breath.

 “Oh, I don’t think so.” One of his free hands surreptitiously slipped into his pocket, searched for the sonic screwdriver. For a moment it struck him as odd that Aurora hadn’t thought to remove it—but then, she hadn’t counted on him freeing himself from his bonds.

He’d only have a few moments to make his escape once his legs were no longer tied.

Aurora was lost in her thoughts, thinking of what she should do next if her plan didn’t work to get the Yeerk out of the Doctor’s head. Her head turned away from him for a minute, not noticing that Essak was escaping from the ropes.

The instant her head was turned, he sprang from the chair and bolted, heading for the door. Already the sonic was working at the rusted lock on the door; then it was open and he was making a break for it.

“Hey!” Aurora screamed out once she noticed him escaping. She bolted towards the door. Picking up her speed, following the Yeerk as it headed outside.

“Come back!” She called out. Feeling angry and sad that the Yeerk was taking the Doctor away from her.

<I don’t think so,> Essak grumbled. He had other, more important issues on his mind—such as finding his way to the nearest Yeerk pool entrance.

If he happened to lead the Time Lady down there… well, so much the better.

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the Doctor and Aurora end up in the hell that is the underground Yeerk pool.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for taking so long to update; my partner and I only recently finished the thread this fic is based off of. There's one more chapter, and then this fic is complete.

Aurora ran, dodging cars and people as so she could reach the Doctor and the Yeerk. She managed to get a few feet away from them. If she could get close enough, she could hit the Yeerk in the head again. Even though she didn’t have anything to knock him out with.

Essak scanned the buildings around him as he ran, hoping that one of them had a secret entrance that would lead to the underground Yeerk pool.

<Yes!> Just ahead, a few more steps, and…

He dove right, bursting through the doors that led into the mall version of The Gap. The Yeerk wove through the pathways and racks of human clothing until he found a dressing room. A few seconds later, the stairs leading down to the pool were revealed and he started heading down.

He knew full well that Aurora was behind him, though he couldn’t help hoping that he’d lost her. It didn’t help that his host was already panicking, having heard the screams, cries, and pleas for help from those hosts that had been temporarily freed of their Yeerk or were being re-infested.

It was music to Essak’s ears.

“Hello?” Aurora called out as she ran into the building where the Yeerk was. She glanced around before heading down to head into the dressing room of the clothing shop.

Why would he want to come down here? She thought as she walked further down into the dressing room.

He’d left the secret entrance open, but Essak could care less about that at the moment as he reached the bottom of the stairs and joined the line with his fellow brothers and sisters who were leaving their hosts to swim in the sludge of the Yeerk pool.

In his mind, the Doctor flinched at the sight before him. The underground cavern was huge, big enough to have fit a football stadium two times over and still had room for several other building complexes. There was, he noticed vaguely, construction equipment on the far side of the pool. Along one side stood a row of cages that held humans and some other alien species that he didn’t recognize immediately: some were at least seven to ten feet tall and had razor blades sticking out of their snakelike heads, elbows, wrists, legs, tails and feet like a T-rex.; others appeared to be almost like a mutated ape or monkey.

Another glance showed aliens that looked like huge centipedes, with one third of their body sticking straight up in the air. Their many eyes reminded the Doctor of red Jell-O, and there were at least two pairs of spindly arms that ended in claws.

Taxxons, the Time Lord realized, and almost felt sick. Their ravenous hunger was legendary. Any sign of weakness or injury or the slightest hint of blood and they would devour their prey instantly without caring if it was still alive or even if it was a fellow Taxxon—or if it was perfectly healthy. Not even a Yeerk inside a Taxxon’s head could control that hunger.

Some of the humans and aliens in the cages were weeping, praying, screaming, cursing; others were silent, as if they had lost all hope of ever being freed.

Then the Doctor heard laughter, and Essak turned his head briefly in order to locate the noise. It came from a smaller group of humans who were laughing at whatever cartoon was showing on a widescreen TV and munching on snack food.

<Those are Collaborators,> Essak informed the Doctor before turning his head away and moving forward in line. <The voluntary hosts.>

The Doctor felt sick all over again. Though he’d grown to care for them less and less over the years, he still couldn’t believe that a human would willingly choose to become a slave—a traitor.

Rassilon, he prayed with all his hearts that Aurora hadn’t followed him down here.

Aurora checked through the dressing room till she managed to find the secret passage. She carefully approached it, peeking inside while keeping herself hidden behind the wall so no one would see her coming. She watched as a line of humans and aliens who were controlled by the Yeerks were heading for the pool. Exiting out of the bodies of their hosts and then put some of them into the cages.

It made Aurora’s two hearts drop, sadden to see the horrifying sight. She had to save these people. She also had to save the Doctor. But it was going to be harder than she thought.

There were only three Controllers in front of him now. The Doctor could tell the moment the Yeerk left its host’s ear: some kicked their feet against the metal pier; others screamed and struggled; yet others did nothing and let themselves be led away. Those few had given up all hope of being rescued, of ever being freed.

There were humans here of every size, color, and age. Some looked like respectable businessmen and women, others seemed as though they should be home with their families instead of down here. There were teenagers, and—he’d seen one in line ahead of him—a little boy who couldn’t have been more than six years old. Cold anger churned inside the Doctor. That kid should have been at home coloring with crayons or playing with toy cars, not stuck in a cage in an underground hellhole.

Then it was his turn. Essak crouched the Doctor’s body down at the edge of the pier, the two Hork-Bajir-Controllers helping to hold him down as he submerged the Doctor’s head in the gray sludge. There was an itchy, slimy, squirming sensation as the Yeerk crawled out of his ear; then nothing as the alien slug slithered into the pool to soak in the Kandrona rays with his brother and sister Yeerks.

Once again in control of his body, the Doctor stood up to his full height. He didn’t say anything as the two Hork-Bajir escorted him off of the pier and over to where the involuntary hosts were kept. Nor did he struggle or try to run—although he wasn’t fond of the idea of being reinfested, he’d seen the Dracon beams the Hork-Bajir, Taxxon, and a few of the human-Controllers were wearing. He had a pretty good idea of the damage they could do, and he wasn’t planning on regenerating (or dying) anytime soon. 

The Doctor just hoped that _if_ Aurora had followed him down here, she wasn’t planning on doing anything stupid.

Aurora watched as the Doctor’s head was being dunked into the water and the Yeerk exited out of his ear. Then two creatures took him to the cages where the other prisoners were. She had made up her mind that she had to save these people before those creatures decide to use their bodies again. But she had to be careful. If she tried anything risky, she would get caught and she wouldn’t be able to save the Doctor and the poor innocent people here.

She waited till the creatures weren’t looking at her before turning to the Doctor. She waved her hands to him while she remained hidden so she couldn’t get caught. But she had to get his attention.

He glanced over at her, eyes widening in surprise before narrowing. “No,” he mouthed, shaking his head. “Get out.” If it meant him being a Controller for the rest of his lives, fine, but he wouldn’t allow them to have another Time Lord (Time Lady, in this case) as a host. One was bad enough.

She watched him as he mouthed out the words to her. But she didn’t want to leave him behind. Same with the innocent people inprisoned. While the controllers were distracted by their conversation, she sneaked her way over to the cages. Hiding behind the cage where the Doctor was. Blending herself in the shadows to avoid being seen.

The Doctor followed her movements with his eyes, silently seething at her stupidity. If she was caught…

<Are you _insane_? > he hissed over the mental path common to Gallifreyans. <You’re just going to get yourself caught, and then where will we be? They’ve already got one Time Lord; I’m not letting them infest another one. Leave now, while you still can—and maybe you won’t get fried with a Dracon beam on the way out.>

‘I’m not leaving you and these people here.” Aurora softly spoke to him in Gallifreyan. “If you think I’m leaving that easily, then you are wrong.” She couldn’t use her sonic on the lock. If she did, the creature would hear her for sure and she would be caught. Then an idea popped into her head. Pulling out a bobby pin from her hair. She waited till the  Taxxon-Controllers were looking away again before approaching the lock on the Doctor’s cage. Picking on the lock. It took her a little while till she managed to get the door unlock before she went into hiding again.

This time he couldn’t resist rolling his eyes. For Rassilon’s sake… That had been rather… pointless. Brave, yes, but not wise. If he tried to escape now, he’d most likely end up with a nice neat hole through his shoulder thanks to a Dracon beam before being dragged back to the re-infestation pier. The Yeerks, he figured, wouldn’t want to waste such a good host body—especially that of a Time Lord. Although… if he regenerated, what would happen to the Yeerk?

Before he knew it, there was a human-Controller standing in front of his cage, opening the door and helping him out then leading him over to the line at the dock for re-infestation. There were two others in front of him, then he sensed another enter the line behind him.

They’d wasted too much time and now…

The first host in line—a male in what appeared to be his early forties—was visibly trembling as he was forced to all fours, his head lowered into the gray sludge of the pool. The Doctor could tell the instant the Yeerk slithered into the man’s ear and regained control—the host stopped trembling, stood stiffly, turned and walked back without so much as a word.

Next in line was a teenage girl—if he had to guess her age he would say she was fourteen. There was a steely resolve in the way she carried herself, but also something more than that. The Doctor found himself wondering just how long she’d been a slave, felt revulsion rise in his throat.

Then it was his turn.

Aurora could only watch in fear as the Controllers came back for the Doctor, putting her plan she had down the drain. But she had to do something before the Doctor becomes one of them again.

 It was risky, but she had to put her next plan into action to save him and the other. She quickly pulled out her sonic screwdriver. Adjusting the settings to just sound before holding it up from where she was. She pressed the button, causing a loud, screeching sound that caused the controllers to cover their ears from the loud, awful sound.

The Doctor winced briefly as the harsh scream of ultrasonics reached his ears, whirled and fought to keep his balance as one of the Hork-Bajir-Controllers on the side of the pier meant to ensure that each of the hosts was re-infested, slammed into him in panic, hands clasped over their ears. The blades on their wrists, arms, knees, tail certainly didn’t help.

In all honestly he’d forgotten about the tail, and hadn’t realized just how strong one of the seven-foot aliens were until he’d tripped over his own two feet (again) in an effort to maintain balance…

…And fell into the murky gray sludge-like waters of the pool.

For a few seconds he was disoriented, spun around in the water, and shuddered as he felt the squishy bodies of Yeerks brush against his skin. As quickly as he flicked some away, more took their place.

 _Not again, not again, not again_!

No, he couldn’t afford to panic, not now. He had to think, orient himself, find his way back to the surface before—

Something slimy brushed against his ear; he felt a distant squirt of painkiller, and then…

<Hello, Doctor. Pleased to hear from me again?>

<Oh, shut up,> the Time Lord snapped back. It was terrifying, humiliating, at how quickly Essak had taken control of his body again. <Just get us out of here, all right?!>

There was no mental response, but then, there didn’t need to be. Already he could feel his body righting itself, swimming toward the surface—had he really gone that far down?—and then finally air. He might not need it as much as humans thanks to his respiratory bypass, but there was still a flash of relief as Essak hauled their—no, _his_ —wet skinny frame out of the pool and onto the pier.

 _Dang it! It didn’t work,_ Aurora thought in panic as she finally turned off the sonic, quickly hiding herself again. Seeing the creatures’ reactions after the screeching sounds. Now they were searching around the room for the source of the sound. She needed to get out of here and get to the Doctor and get the Yeerk out of his head.

Essak pushed their body to its feet, broke into a run. “Andalites!” he choked out, knowing it was the only explanation the other Controllers would want to hear. “It’s the Andalite bandits in human morph!” The Yeerk lifted a finger, pointed at a small group of human-Controllers.

While everyone else was distracted, he made his way over to Aurora and grabbed her wrist. “C’mon!” he hissed. “Let’s get the bloody hell out of here before someone sees us!”

Aurora gasped as he grabbed her wrists and pulled her out of her hiding place. She wasn’t able to pull away from him, for he had a tight grip on her. “Let me go! You’re the Yeerk!” She glared at him.

“Does it really matter if I am or not?” Essak hissed. “Let’s just get out of here, all right? If it makes you feel better, you can torture me later. Now, come on!”

He didn’t wait for a response; already he was heading for the staircase and tugging the Time Lady after him.


	5. Chapter 5

Aurora felt herself being pulled by the Yeerk. She tried to pull away from him, but his grip was too tight to pull her hand free. “Why are you saving me?” She asked in confusion as he pulled her up the staircase. She thought the Yeerk was going to throw her into the water to make her one of the Yeerk zombies. But was surprised that instead he pull her away from that.

“Well, to be honest, by the looks of you you’re not much of a Time Lady. And they’ve already got one Gallifreyan as a Controller. D’you really want to be stuck with a Yeerk in your head?”

Essak hoped it sounded convincing enough. His host was rather dazed at the moment—well, either that or the Doctor had retreated back into his own corner of his mind. Either way, he wasn’t getting much of anything from the Time Lord.

Besides, most Yeerks copied their hosts’ mannerisms and speech patterns perfectly thanks to unlimited access to memories. Essak knew of some that were particularly bad actors—Temrash 114, also of the Sulp Niar pool, instantly came to mind.

“I am so a Time Lady! And I’m a Gallifreyan!” Aurora glared at him, angered that he would say that to her. “And how do I know that I can trust you after what you’re doing to the Doctor? Because you’re losing your chances to be trustworthy.” She asked him as they stepped into the same dressing room where she followed him.

The Yeerk rolled his eyes. “I kept you from being captured and made into a Controller, didn’t I?”

“It’s not like a Yeerk to just save someone.” She narrowed her eyes at him. Still feeling concerned for the Doctor.

“Oh, and _you’re_ such an expert on Yeerks, are you?” Essak muttered, just loud enough for her to hear him.

“Well, no. I just think it’s odd,” she said to him, wondering where he was taking her.

“Fine. Whatever. Look, just pretend you ever saw me, go back to your TARDIS or however else you came here, and leave. Just don’t go to the Hork-Bajir or Andalite homeworlds, all right?” the Yeerk said, releasing his hold on her arm and picking up his pace so that he was ahead of her.

“No! Not till you release the Doctor.” Aurora rushed over to him, grabbing hold of his arm with both hands so he wouldn’t get away. “I’m not letting you take my godfather away from me!”

Both Yeerk and Time Lord froze at that, turned slowly to face her. “…What,” they said flatly.

Aurora froze as well. “Nothing. It’s just nothing. Please, just let the Doctor go! I beg of you!” She give the Yeerk a sad glance as she held tightly to his arm.

The Time Lord-Controller grimaced and shook her off. “No. And that _wasn’t_ nothing. Besides, he’s not your godfather. In some other universe or timeline, maybe, but not this one. Now, get the bloody hell out of here. You don’t want to be killed with a Dracon beam or fed alive to the Taxxons, do you?” he said coldly.

“I don’t care what happens to me. All I want is the Doctor to be safe. And I’ll risk anything to make sure he’s back to his old self.” She said with a serious look on her face.

<Well, if by my “old self” she means a serial killer with a god complex,> the Doctor snarked silently to Essak. If the Yeerk slug had had a mouth in his natural state, he would have smiled. As it was, he repeated the Doctor’s thought-speak words to her: “Sure. If by his ‘old self’ you mean a serial killer who’s also gone off the deep end and has a rather large god complex.”

“No, I mean the Doctor that’s like fire and rage. He’s known as the oncoming storm, and….he’s the kindest and bravest man that I know. He would save people, and stop the monsters. He’s a hero. Everyone’s hero. And my hero. That is why he earned the name, The Doctor.” She spoke up to him.

A derisive scoff left him. “Not anymore.” Essak tapped one long finger on the side of his host’s head. “I’ve got access to his memories, remember? He’s stopped saving people and destroying the monsters a long time ago.”

“You don’t know him like I do. And you don’t know about me. You may have his thoughts, but there’s still things you don’t know about him. So don’t assume that you know everything about us.” She glared at him, not backing down from the fight. Behind her back, she held her sonic. Setting it up to adjust the sound that would be loud enough to knock out someone unconscious.

<Let me talk to her!> the Doctor snapped. <I’ll be able to convince her better than you can!>

<Fine,> Essak reluctantly agreed, relinquishing his control.

There wasn’t much of a physical difference—there wouldn’t be—but the Doctor gritted his teeth against the scream of ultrasonics. “That’s not going to work on me, Aurora. Time Lord. And if you were trying to knock me unconscious, you’d be too.”

He stepped back from her, not wanting to aggravate her further. “I’m _not_ your Doctor, no matter what you think. I never met you, and I’m the _only_ one in my universe who survived the Last Great Time War by committing double genocide. I’m not a hero—I never was.”

Aurora softened up when the Doctor spoke to her. Signing, putting her sonic away in her pocket. “I know you haven’t met me. Not yet at least. And, you might think you’re not a hero because of what happened on Gallifrey. On that day, I know you didn’t have a choice It was either Gallifrey, or the entire universe. I lost so much, and I was angry at you for taking that away. But, I saw a different man that would still save many lives.You may not be my Doctor, but you’re still the Doctor that cares for the souls in this universe. And you shouldn’t give that up just because you’re unable to save everyone.”

She took a step backwards from him. “And no matter what, I will find a way to stop these Yeerks from taking over this planet. Even if…I have to do it alone.” She give the Doctor a sad glance. “I’ll come back for you and save you from the yeerk within you. But I need to save everyone from them first.” She turned away from him and began to head back to the yeerk’s hideout. She may not save the Doctor or even convince him to help her, but she wouldn’t leave those innocent people in the hands of the yeerks. After seeing the little boy in the cage, that convince her that there was something she had to do.

Essak had taken back control of the Time Lord’s mind by then, and curled the Doctor’s lip in the hint of a sneer as she turned around. “Good luck,” he said sarcastically before turning and heading back toward his host’s TARDIS.

If she went down there and ended up infested herself, that wasn’t his problem.

He had a new, fascinating host after all, and access to the rest of the universe.

(Visser Three would be pleased to hear what they had to report.)

First, however, he would have to build a portable Kandrona.

The first-ever Time Lord-Controller in the TARDIS.

Next stop: Everywhere.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you who are probably wondering why this Doctor said he was a serial killer: this is an AU Dark!Ten who never witnessed Adelaide's suicide, refused to save Wilf from the radiation chamber, and while traveling on his own for a very long while slowly turned more and more to violence to solve his problems, eventually becoming infamous as a serial murderer and is wanted by Torchwood, U.N.I.T., and the Shadow Proclamation. In his universe, Aurora never existed and he's the only Time Lord/Gallifreyan who survived the Last Great Time War.
> 
> If you're unfamiliar with Animorphs: Visser Three is the leader of the Yeerk invasion of Earth, and the only Yeerk ever to infest an Andalite body—and therefore the only morph-capable Yeerk. Yeerks receive nutrients from the Kandrona, their homeworld's sun, and must return to the pool every three days. (Unless, of course, they cannibalize their own kind—so far one Yeerk has been known to do this.) There are portable Yeerk pools made for smaller-scale infestations, and presumably are also inside Yeerk spaceships (Bug fighters, the visser's Blade ship, the Yeerk mothership, etc.).
> 
> And yes, the whole point of this fic/verse was to make the Doctor into a Controller, so no, he's not going to be free from Yeerk control any time soon. (Sorry not sorry.)


End file.
